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28.12.14

Before I'll take you on a summary of my 2014 I'd like to share a little preview with you. Because - for the first time in my life, I daresay! - I have made a couple of new year's resolutions. Crocheting, creating, exploring new techniques, connecting with other creatives, photographing and blogging makes me happy. So I will reorganise some things in my life which should enable me to spend more time to do these things. I really hope to pop by here more often, share more patterns, start making tutorials even. And I'd like to take more time - quality time ;-) - to say hello on all those lovely blogs out there.
Well, let's see in December 2015 if I've kept that promise... (Or threat - depending on your point of view of course, hahaha.)This year started for me with a period of travelling (hooray!). After that it has been a hectic year, and that shows in the numbers of posts this year. Only 32, this being the 33th. The lowest number since I started blogging mid-2012. Nevertheless, there has been a steady growth in the number of visitors - and I'm thankful for each and every of your kind visits! Most visitors are from the United States, followed by the UK and The Netherlands.

Okay, time for a chronological recap of some my favourite projects of last year. Below each (set of) photograph(s) you'll find the link that brings you to the original post.♦♦♦
I made this sample for a blanket in Thailand. I decided it was not a suitable project while travelling: too much weaving in, too many colour changes, all in all too fiddly. Nevertheless: I really like it, so I would still love to make a blanket with this pattern someday. The sample lives its life as a doily now.

So I decided on another, less fiddly project: conveniently called my Travel Blanket. Easy and portable. Loved every minute making of it. When I see it now I remember all the places where I sat crocheting the squares: under a tree near a temple, on a terrace overlooking the Mekong, in one of my favourite vegetarian restaurants while enjoying a coconut smoothie, in an old, traditional wooden house... And piecing it together on my small terrace overlooking the mountains... Memories I'll hope to treasure for always.Click here for the original post.

Okay, so these are not stitches, but a glimpse of two pieces that inspired me while in Thailand - and still continue to inspire me. Although different from each other, I love the compositions and colours combinations in both.

And while travelling I took you with me on something of a queest to good local yarn... I still remember how deep blue my fingers were when I worked with this indigo hemp yarn. ;-)Click here for the original post.

I realised my biggest granny square so far! It measures 2.5 x 2.5 meter. Started as a stash busting project, but - as the rounds grew bigger and bigger - I ended up (of course...) getting new yarn. Love how comfortable this blanket turned out.Click here for the original post.

After that colour explosion I needed to get the balance right with an 'All Natural' post - which had actually an interesting follow up. I'll go into that in a whole new post soon... *teaser alert*Click here for the original post.

But then - hooray! unbelievable! trumpets please! - I actually began and finished a project. I'm in love with this cape, the pattern - again - is from a Japanese crochet book. In the original post you'll find the information about that book. It's definitely a cape that attracts attention when you wear it. I'm especially happy with how I tweaked the pattern by crocheting the neck cowl, in stead of knitting it (which the original pattern calls for).

I'm not proud to say that since I became a crocheter, I became a hoarder as well. Yarn and hooks. Do I need to say more? (I'll actually do a post or two about that in the next year...) This autumn, in my insatiable hunger for new crochet tools, I came across the handmade wooden crochet hooks by Henk: www.houtenhaaknaalden.nl. So of course I had to order a hook. ;-) He made me this gorgeous hook for me from an old bench (recycled, I like that!). I haven't used it a lot yet, because I've been working on projects that required another size, but I will definitely use it more often in the future. I'll write more about it next year. For now I'll say that he has many more types of hooks and he can make them fitted to your hand. (This is not a commercial, I'm just enthusiastic about such a beautiful craft!)Click here for the original post.

Early this month I shared my Fifties Cowl with you and was swept away by your kind comments. In a second post I wrote down the pattern.Click here for the original, picture heavy post.Click here for the pattern.
Looking back, I think my year could quite accurately be summarized as Year Of The Works-in-Progress. (I omitted the wips and several other projects from this summary.) Quite a few of them still unfinished...Mmm, I feel another resolution coming up, haha.

I would like to end this post with expressing my sincere happiness with your visits, kind comments, inspiration and support. The online craft community it just wonderful.

Thanks for everything and I wish you a happy, creative, inspirational 2015!♦♦♦

24.12.14

Not sure if this title is correct Portuguese... [Update: I'm informed it's not. ;-) It should have beenTons pastel de Lisboa. Thanks for pointing me to the correct wording!] I very recently came back (again!) from a stay in Lisbon and was (again!) totally inspired by the amazing light and the gorgeous colours everywhere. Pastels mainly!

I did my usual tour of retrosaria's (yarn & haberdashery shops). I bought this organic cotton yarn called For Nature (from the Portuguese brand Rosários4) and a piece of this most lovely flowered cotton (here in the background), in matching colours.

When I was there I crocheted this doily. The pattern is not mine but from a Japanese crochet book. (I'm sorry, I don't have the title.)

This is where I got my inspiration from colourwise... (I did not bring my camera, so here is a compilation of snapshots I took with my phone.)

I could certainly see this colours in my crochet. :-) What a lovely and inspiring city Lisbon is. Wonderful! I have another post lined up about it... (And I am planning to go back there for even more inspiration. Ha!)

23.12.14

Many
thanks again for your kind comments on my Fifties Cowl. I have been
wearing it a lot recently and I really like it: it's
comfortable, stylish – to my modest opinion at least ;-) – and
can be worn in multiple ways.

I
promised to write down the pattern and here it is. I also
drew
two charts that – hopefully – will help too.

I really
wanted to have it ready before christmas – for those who like to
crochet their way through these days. Not unlike me. ;-)What
do you need?– yarn: Scheepjes StoneWashed XL, colours MoneStone and Amazonite (two balls of each, but I tend to crochet fairly tightly, so it might be safer to buy three of each)- crochet hook 6 mm (this stitch produces a fairly thick fabric, so I
would not advise a smaller size hook)–
buttons– scissor
and darning needle.

PatternTo
startChain 120 (or any multiple of 2) Mine has a base of
120 chains, this give a fairly snug fit if you wrap it twice, like
in the photo above. If you'd like more drape, or are not sure it'll
fit, I advise to start with a longer chain.

Round
2ch1, *1sc in the first st of the last round, ch1,
skip 1 sc* repeat from * till * till end of round. End the round
with a sc

Round 3 till 27Repeat round 2Fasten
off and weave in ends.

The basic is now ready! The only thing
you need to do is to add simple borders and buttons.

BordersI
didn't make a border lengthwise, only in the width. Side A with the
button holes, side B with the buttons.

Border A (with
button holes): this is a basic row of single crochet, interrupted
by short chains to make the button holes. Where exactly you want to make
the button holes depends of course on the size of your buttons and
the number of buttons you use.

Border
B (with buttons): this is a
basic row of 28 single crochet. Fasten off and sew the buttons in
place. I advise to place them not too close to the border; this way the
cowl will close neatly, without any gaps.

Okay,
that's all my crafty friends! Let me know if you have any
questions.I do hope you will enjoy this pattern and cowl as much as I
do.

May you have some lovely, animal friendly, crafty and stress
free days ahead of you!♦♦♦ Many, many thanks for your visit! ♦♦♦

3.12.14

The woven (or moss) crochet stitch is a one I'm completely smitten with - I guess from the first time I saw it. I love how sturdy and squishy a piece of crochet turns out when you use this stitch and I adore the woven look of it.

I've always wanted to make a bigger project with this stitch, and since I lack time for another blanket (although I would love to make a blanket in this style at some point) I decided on a cowl for now. Again I used pastels to obtain a similar fifties look. Which matches my vintage outfits. ;-)

Since I rather not mess up my bun when putting a cowl over my head ;-) I planned to use buttons to close the cowl. (This way I could also wear it as a scarf.) I happened to have some lovely vintage style buttons in my stack that were just great for the job. (Originally I planned the buttons to be on the back of the cowl, but I like these so much I actually prefer to wear them on the front.)

It's a fairly simple pattern, if you like me to write it down I will try to do so soon. For now some basics:
- Yarn: Scheepjes StoneWashed XL, colours MoonStone and Amazonite (two balls of each)

- Crochet hook: 6 mm
- I scored the buttons on a market a couple of years ago.

As I shared here a while ago I have so many ideas for this blog and for new crochet designs. But time is still an issue unfortunately. Hence the sporadic posts on this spot... Hopefully next year will bring more time for both!

8.11.14

How are you? I thought I'd pop round just to say hello... Not really a project to show. I'm abroad right now, but I prepared a little post before I left. I'd like to share this little colour pop with you.

It never seizes to amaze me how colours can invigorate me. They really brighten up my spirit. I'm sure many of you feel the same about colour. Or am I mistaken?

Maybe you'd like to float with me for a while on this cloud of colours...

14.10.14

Hello there, crafty friends! How are you? Many thanks for your kind comments on my last post, they made me feel over the moon!

No finished stuff today... But I'd like to share some snapshots from my workplace.

My dotted blanket is slowly progressing. Actually, eventually it was a very speedy progress, but recently I have been lacking time again. And I want this one to be a big, heavy, snuggly blanket - in short: I have still some rows to work on. ;-) By the way, I was inspired by the circles of this lovely blanket from Three Beans in a Pod to make ribbed dots for this one. (The squares are different though.)

Bunny resting on a couple of doilies.

My little notebook in which I scribble down my patterns and my flashes of crochet related *Eureka!* moments.

Here is the blanket again. As you can see I decided to abandon the powdery pink from the first picture.

One more, just because close ups of yarn make me happy... (I'm sure there are worse things that make people happy...)

And another sample, but *wow* - what a gorgeous hook is that?! I tell you more about this handmade beauty - and where to get it - in a next post!

Because now, it's already getting late, and the alarm clock will sound early enough tomorrow... Many thanks for your visit & have a lovely week!♦♦♦

WELCOME

Thank you for dropping by. I am a maker, designer and crocheter. Inspiration can be found anywhere: nature, books, colours, art and vintage textiles… I live in a cute old house somewhere between Amsterdam and the North Sea. On this blog I’ll share my love for crochet with you.

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